Valley gets new Native health center

August 16, 2005

DAWN DE BUSK/Frontiersman reporter

MAT-SU - An estimated 5,000 to 7,000 Alaska Natives or American Indians live in the Mat-Su Borough, and their needs for primary medical care have prompted the opening of the Valley Native Primary Care Center, according to Dr. Douglas Eby, vice president of Southcentral Foundation.

Eby and his co-workers came up with those numbers by using multiple resources like the census figures, school district information, and medical and Medicaid records.

Eby also coordinated with Chickaloon Tribal Village and Knik Tribal Council for access to information and tribal support, he said.

A few years ago, Southcentral Foundation did a needs assessment, which concluded there was a lack of primary care for Alaska Natives and American Indians in the Valley, he said.

"The community has been long overdue for a direct-care facility," Eby said. "But in the future, a small clinic in a strip mall just isn't going to cut it."

The new clinic, which has been open for six months at 1830 E. Parks Hwy., Suite A-134 - a temporary, leased spot - has taken a very low-key approach to advertising its existence.

There really isn't enough space to take on too many new clients yet, so Southcentral Foundation still buys services for the Native community from other clinics like AIC Urgent Care and Family Health Center, Eby said.

"We were braced when the clinic opened but we haven't seen a decrease in the number of patients," Dr. Michael Moser, with Family Health Center, said. "We've had a contract with Southcentral for several years. We still do, because the new clinic is only able to handle a fraction of the clients."

A third care provider will come on board at the Valley Native Primary Care Center around Aug. 22, according to Kathy Labeau, systems administrator with the center. The newest employee will bring the staff to 21 people, with three care providers - two medical doctors and one nurse practitioner - who can evaluate patients.

Later this month, the staff will do a mass mailing to 5,100 people who are registered as patients at the Alaska Native Medical Center and have Valley addresses, Labeau said.

Both clinics, as well as the one in Anchorage, offer a more trust-oriented medical approach that's a culturally based need, according to Southcentral Foundation Public Relations Manager Connie Irrigoo.

"It's part of our philosophy of health and wellness. If the whole family can see one doctor, then the doctor knows our histories and if we have the potential for a common illness," Irrigoo said.

She said since the opening of the Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage, the number of emergency-room visits has decreased 50 percent and specialty-care visits have dropped 20 percent.

"When you have a better relationship with your doctor, as the patient, your responsibility to wellness reaches a higher level," Irrigoo said.

Family Health Center also favors the philosophy of creating a foundation of trust between care providers and clients.

"We're trying to maintain continuity so the patient doesn't get the same test repeated, the same questions asked, the same anonymous care," Moser said.

Already, clients visiting the Valley Native Primary Care Center have commented on how happy they are to skip the drive to Anchorage and to be able to get their medications locally. And a few new clients have asked when dental and optometry services will be brought to the Valley.

"When you have 7,000 people and you know that number is increasing very rapidly. In time, dental and mental health will be offered. Our goal is to build a large system like we did in Anchorage," Eby said.

Is a new, bigger Native clinic on the horizon?

"We're moving toward building a new facility, a permanent one. But no land has been purchased and the question remains what the structure will look like," Eby said.

Dawn De Busk can be reached at 352-2252, or dawn.debusk@ frontiersman.com.